| Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage! | |
| Publisher: | Sega |
| Producer: | Yuichiro Kondo |
| Platforms: | Android, iOS |
| Genre: | Rhythm game, visual novel |
| Modes: | Single-player, multiplayer |
Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage! (subtitled Brand New World from its 3rd anniversary) is a rhythm game developed by Colorful Palette and published by Sega. The game is a spin-off from Sega's series, featuring the 6 Virtual Singers of Crypton Future Media, Hatsune Miku, Megurine Luka, Kagamine Rin and Len, MEIKO, and KAITO, alongside the cast of 20 original human characters that are split into five themed units. Set in the real world where Virtual Singers only exist as fiction, the characters come across another dimension called "SEKAI," where various "true feelings" are projected.
The game was released for Android and iOS devices on September 30, 2020. Sega released an English server of the game worldwide on December 7, 2021, with expansion to 5 countries in Southeast Asia in September 25, 2023.[1] [2] [3] A Taiwanese server, published by Ariel Network, was released on September 30, 2021.[4] [5] A Korean server was released on May 20, 2022 in South Korea, published by Nuverse.[6]
Colorful Stage gameplay consists of tapping notes as they slide toward the bottom to the rhythm of a chosen song; players have to tap, slide and flick to match new free-form rhythm notes, and special yellow notes that are worth more points towards the score. The overall gameplay is similar to Sega's Persona Dancing (Atlus), Chunithm and Bandai Namco's The Idolmaster-themed rhythm games, the players are given 1,000 health points to clear a song with the ability to heal through character skills, and one can adjust song speed and difficulty to their liking. In lieu of an energy system that is prevalent in most free-to-play games, Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage utilizes Live Boosts that increases rewards for completing a song, and players can continue playing even when they run out of boosts.
Players gain experience points (EXP) by clearing songs and listening to overworld conversations between characters. Such talks are fully voiced with 2.5D movement via Live2D technology, and their conversations are depicted in a visual novel-style presentation that is prepared for each group, including the Virtual Singers such as Miku. Further dialogues are added over time through events. EXP also improves a unit's rank, which unlocks additional chapters in group stories. Cards, which use a star ranking system to determine rarity (four stars being the rarest), are acquired via the gacha system, a luck-based mechanic in which players spend the in-game currency Crystals with the hope of winning their desired cards. Although Project SEKAI is a free-to-play game, players can spend real-life money to acquire in game currency.
The game also features Virtual Lives, which is a mode where players can go to a virtual concert, similar to augmented reality or a Vocaloid live concert, where players can interact with one another. They can see other players all around the world and their favorite group performing via 3D animation.
The game initially launched with 28 songs, with around four new songs added per month to the game; as of May 2024, a total of 429 songs are included. The tracklist mainly consists of Vocaloid songs or those from Vocaloid producers, with most songs having two versions: the original version (or new versions specifically made for the game; named "Virtual Singer version" in-game), and SEKAI versions, having the song covered by the original characters, and sometimes joined by a Virtual Singer. Some songs also have a 3D MV or animated MV, with animated MVs either being newly created for the game (named "2D MV" in-game) or original. Songs without an MV are played with a static 2D background, known as "Lite" in game.
Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage is set in the real world, specifically in Shibuya, Tokyo. In this game, Hatsune Miku and her friends are famous fictional singers existing in the real world as Virtual Singers. They sing songs from creators all over the world, but they also exist in a mysterious world different from the real world that is created from a person's "true feelings", featuring various visual appearances based on the person. There are as many SEKAI as there are emotions, and its form changes depending on the person's emotions. Therefore, the focus of the game is on the original characters and their journeys to find their "true feelings" with the help of the Virtual Singers.[7]
In order to enter SEKAI, one must find and play the song "Untitled." This silent song has no melody or lyrics and is created at the same time as the SEKAI, and is mysteriously inserted on their devices. It can be anything, such as a game console, a smartphone, a smartwatch, a TV, a tablet, and a computer. When they play an "Untitled" song, they can travel between the real world and the SEKAI. As one is able to discover their true feelings, the song will contain a playable melody and lyrics, and well as its title.
Each of the five groups and members has their own story, focusing on their journey to convey their "true feelings":
The characters are divided into five groups of four, each with a theme related to the groups' backstory, complete with Hatsune Miku in a thematic design to sing alongside them, and start with one other Virtual Singer (with the exception of Vivid BAD SQUAD, who have Len and MEIKO, and Nightcord at 25:00, who only have Miku herself). As the game's story progresses, new versions of each Virtual Singer appear in the different SEKAI.
An all-girl pop-rock band formed by a group of childhood friends who have learned to overcome their differences. Their SEKAI, the School SEKAI, consists of a classroom bathed in the afterglow of the sunset. They are initially supported by Hatsune Miku and Megurine Luka, who take on the form of band musicians. Their image color is Midnight Blue, and they represent memories.
A pop idol group formed by one girl who dreams of becoming an idol and three girls who have quit being idols. Their SEKAI, the Stage SEKAI, consists of a concert stage illuminated by countless glow sticks. They are initially supported by Hatsune Miku and Kagamine Rin, who take on the form of idols. Their image color is Bright Green, and they represent hope.
A top-level hip-hop, teen pop, electronic and street music group formed to surpass a legend. They were originally two separate musical duos before their merger: Vivids and Bad Dogs. Their SEKAI, the Street SEKAI, consists of an alleyway with walls covered in graffiti and concert posters. They are initially supported by Hatsune Miku, who takes on the form of a street dancer, alongside MEIKO, who takes on the form of a café waitress, and Kagamine Len, who takes on the form of a disc jockey. Their image color is Vivid Red, and they represent passion.
is an eccentric musical theater troupe formed to "put a smile on people's faces to make the world happy". Their SEKAI, the Wonderland SEKAI, consists of an amusement park filled with fantastical encounters like singing flowers and walking stuffed animals. They are supported by Hatsune Miku, who takes on the form of a cat-like troupe jester, and KAITO, who takes on the form of a suited troupe actor. Their image color is Pop Yellow, and they represent happiness.
is an indie underground music circle whose identities are shrouded in mystery. Each of the group's members have expressed thoughts of "wanting to disappear". Their SEKAI, the Empty SEKAI consists of an empty space with nothing in it except for a few dim rays of light and distorted screens. The only singer to accompany them at game launch is Hatsune Miku, who is mysterious in her personality as well as a gothic lolita appearance, though this changes later on. Their image color is Dark Purple, and they represent trauma. Nightcord refers to the online voice-chat platform the group use, similar to the real-life chat platform Discord.
The game was first announced on August 30, 2019, at Magical Mirai 2019.[8] [9] The development is done by the Colorful Palette, a newly established subsidiary of CyberAgent's Craft Egg (developers of rhythm game BanG Dream! Girls Band Party). Yuichiro Kondo, the first producer of Girls Band Party, also serves as the producer for this game. The project started in 2017 and was initially being developed entirely by Craft Egg, but Kondo thought it was necessary to avoid a situation where the project would clash with the development of Girls Band Party, so he created Colorful Palette with Craft Egg's core members within the company.[10] [11] [12] It was developed with Unity, and uses Crypton's Piapro Studio NT engine for speech synthesis.[13]
The title is a rhythm game that features arrangements of songs made by various artists over the years using the Vocaloid software. The original story of the game is told in a visual novel and musical film-style. The direction of the game's design and concept is different from other Hatsune Miku-related games, such as Sega's , where the player and Hatsune Miku face each other directly and communicate in the game. The project is said to be "a work that embodies the existence of Hatsune Miku" and explores the relationship between music and people. One of the reasons behind this format was the idea of "wanting the younger generation to listen to more Vocaloid music and other songs from the internet." Therefore, while knowing that there could be people opposed to the idea of addition of original characters, it was decided to develop such a setting.[14]
The game's pre-registration was originally set to begin in late April, but was delayed until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pre-registration later started on July 17, 2020, and Sega revealed the goals were set from 100,000 to 1,000,000 pre-registrations. In September 2020, the pre-registrations later reached 1,000,000 and players who pre registered received rewards.
The game's worldwide release was announced in August 2021 with a slightly different title, Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage!. Nuverse released the game for the Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan markets on September 30, 2021. Nuverse is also managing the release in Mainland China, South Korea, and Southeast Asia, with a release date to be announced. Sega released the game for all other regions (especially Western world including Oceania, Europe and North America) on December 7, 2021. The game was released on 25 September 2023 for Southeast Asia, said to be an extension for the global server.
, Project SEKAI has reached over 5 million users and received positive reviews.[15] The game was ranked 9th on Twitter's Most Talked About Video Games list in 2021.[16]
A mini anime series titled was announced during the game's first anniversary live stream. The anime mini-series has 10 episodes that will be broadcast through Tokyo MX and is available for free to watch through the game's official YouTube channel.[17] The anime has the characters drawn in chibi-style, and a bit of gag-esque story that is slightly different from the original story.[18] It premiered on January 13, 2022.[19] Official English subtitles are made available sometime after the official premiere.
Another short animated series was announced during the 3rd anniversary Wondershow Channel Livestream called "Journey to Bloom," which is the summary of each units' main story. The series is available for free to watch through the game's official YouTube channel. Official English subtitles are made available sometime after the official premiere. The series is produced by P.A. Works and directed by Hiroyuki Hata.
An anime film titled was announced on July 29, 2024. It was first teased as a "new project" on July 21, 2024 which shows an unfamiliar variant of Hatsune Miku.[20] The film tells an original story featuring all original characters as well virtual singers. They meet Miku, who confesses that there are people she wants to reach yet no matter how much she sings, her voice can't reach them. Miku thinks by knowing closer about these people, she will be able to reach these people she wants to reach.
P.A.Works is producing the film with direction by Hiroyuki Hata and screenplay by Yoko Yonaiyama. Yuki Akiyama designing the characters, and Satoshi Hōno composing the music. It is set to premiere in Japanese theaters on January 17, 2025.[21] A global release has been confirmed.[22]
An anthology comic was released on November 25, 2021, by Ichijinsha's DNA Media Comics. The manga collection are drawn by 15 different artists with their own depiction of the game, hence its content may not count as canon.[23] An official visual fan book was released on November 26, 2021.[24]
The game has held two types of live concerts: SEKAI Symphony and Colorful Live.
SEKAI Symphony (Japanese: セカイシンフォニー) is an annual orchestra concert for the songs that has been featured in the game. It is held annually held at Pacifico Yokohama and is performed by SEKAI Symphony Special Band of Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. The first concert, held on October 16, 2021 featured Tsukasa Tenma and Nene Kusanagi's voice actors Daisuke Hirose and Machico as guests.[25] The second concert was held on June 11, 2022, featuring the voice actresses of Nightcord at 25:00 (Tomori Kusunoki, Rui Tanabe, Minori Suzuki, and Hinata Sato) as guests.[26] The third concert was held on June 10, 2023, featuring Ichika Hoshino and Saki Tenma's voice actresses Ruriko Noguchi and Karin Isobe as guests.[27] The fourth concert will be held on June 8, 2024, featuring the voice actors of Vivid BAD SQUAD (Akina, Tomomi Jiena Sumi, Fumiya Imai, and Kent Itō) as guests.[28]
Colorful Live is a live concert featuring characters from the game in hologram, 3D model that is different from the one seen in the game. It follows the nature of Magical Mirai, an annual Miku-centered live concert, where all of the 26 characters (20 original characters + 6 Virtual Singers) will sing and dance along with real life band performers. The first concert, titled Colorful Live 1st -Link- was held on January 28–30, 2022 at Makuhari Messe. There was also paid live stream held on Abema TV.[29]
An annual event called ''Project Sekai Thanks Festival'' is being held on late September to celebrate the game's upcoming anniversary (September 30). Many of the original characters' voice actors and actress make appearance in the event, who will then perform in a mini concert and reading act. Some will perform as the host in the special edition of Sekai Broadcast Livestream, a talk show, as well Sekai Radio. An exhibition is also set up inside the venue. The event was first held on to celebrate the game’s upcoming second anniversary, which was held on September 23-24, 2022 at Tachikawa Stage Garden. The second event was held at Tokyo Dome City Hall on September 16-17, 2023. The third event will be held on September 26-27, 2024 at Yokohama Buntai.
An event that "connects fan and creators" which features Vocaloid Producers and Vocaloid related illustrators is being held annually since 2023. It is similar to comic market where creators tend their own booth and sell their own goods. There are also official goods featuring original characters and virtual singers.